Chapter 277: Secrets in Shadow

"Form up! Onto the flowing mana! And now, fast march!"

Claud and Lily watched on as a road of blue light carried the armies of Duchess Lacuna northwards, towards the border between Lostfon County and Quies Dukedom. He and Lily had no idea what that skill was, but the speed at which the duchess' heavy infantry units were moving was comparable to that of a fast carriage. Travelling alongside the azure road were metal carriages that didn't have horses attached to them, presenting yet another mystery to the world.

"Should we chase?" Lily asked, a concerned expression on her face.

Claud paused. "We could. But…there's no point in chasing them. What matters for the duchess now is that she retakes Quies. But that barrier, though it's burning, isn't what I would call ordinary. Perhaps something else might happen. Or the great Dark might succeed in securing Voidum as their base of operations and send troops into Nihila to…"

"To?"

"Yeah, that's the problem." Claud ran some fingers through his hair, before looking up at the three Moons. "In the first place, Emperor Grandis should be handling this issue. He has strong folders at his command, right? How about his capital city? Is he not afraid of the Moons or the Dark attacking it? From what I can tell, this place is probably going to become a battleground between the two huge forces, and the Emperor is just sitting on his throne and twiddling his thumbs."

"Shh!" Lily looked around, frightened. "Don't say that out loud. Anyway, the Emperor might be busy or something. Maybe there's a third or fourth threat that we haven't noticed yet; I don't know. Besides, the Moons and the Dark can't be fighting over the Grandis continent alone, right? What about Nihal and Lacheln? There has to be a war there too."

"Really?" Claud found the concept somewhat hard to imagine. "Fighting a war across three continents…still, two of the Moons' Bearers of Destiny defintely died at the hands of the great Dark."

"How did you know?"

"Isn't it a bit obvious?" Claud asked. "Those ominous notifications. If the Moons' Bearer of Destiny dies, the deadline for the Dark's descent shortens."

"Hmm. So the Bearers of Destiny for both sides are restraining bolts?" Lily nodded to herself. "True. Whoever descends first has an advantage, right? It's just that I can't quite envision the great Dark descending. What, like a horribly dark night? We already had that."

The two thought about it for a while, before Lily shook herself. "Right, what should we do now?"

"I…" Claud fell silent. "I wanted to launch an empowered attack at the dome, but I'm not sure if it's a good idea."

"What'll happen when you do that?"

"The dome is destroyed?" Claud replied. "No, I'm not talking about that. I'm talking about the possibility that the Moons might discover me. Their light is shining upon the world now; they might just be able to locate me in the few moments when I attack."

"The Moons can't do that—"

"We didn't know that the Moons and the great Dark could descend until the announcement came in," Claud replied. "In fact, we need to assume that they are capable of knowing everything at night, much like the great Dark itself."

He paused, since that was very much a scary thought. "I know, I'm crazy."

Lily giggled. "But that's my type of crazy. At least you aren't crazily confident. Most people with that power of yours would have turned into power-hungry fellows or something, right? The ability to threaten entire territories with a single blow is a very good bargaining chip."

"Good thing it's me, then." Claud smiled. "Maybe…I have that skill because I'm me."

"Philosophical thought. So, are you going to bring down the barrier for them?" Lily asked. "Or are you going to let them do it themselves?"

Claud pondered on the matter for a moment, and then shook his head. "The Chromatic Lord doesn't need to show his face in non-emergencies. And besides, I only wanted to help Lostfon. Quies is none of my business."

He smiled. "I hope I didn't disappoint you with my answer."

"You put our safety first. How can I bring myself to even be disappointed?" Lily looked up at the Moons. "And unexpected developments did occur."

Claud felt for the two sentient objects in his pocket and looked at the three crescents in the sky. "I wonder if the Moons came one day early because we took Throne out from Celestia."

Lily eyed Claud once. "…I don't think we can provide a definitive answer to that one, nor do I want an answer as well."

"We might need the answer if we want to find out their origins. Those two little fellows are definitely of some grand origin…although they are indeed fast asleep right now."

"Asleep?"

"Yeah." Claud cast another glance at the horizon, where Duchess Lacuna had led her army to, and then shook his head. "We'll turn in for the night. Maybe stay in the city for a little while more. If nothing bad happens, we can return to Monsville. Besides, if I do anything, the little fellows will wake up and start meeping at each other again."

Lily stifled a yawn. "I do feel rather tired."

"This night has been another eventful one, and we just came back from the ruins," Claud replied. "In fact, we haven't even had the chance to examine our loot yet. If we can use that Second Shadow and have one of those clones or whatever stay here…"

"That'll work too, yes."

The two left the battlements, descending from the city wall. On the way, Claud reflected on the waste of the skillstrip he had used, but at least he had the presence of mind to think his decisions through and everything. In the end, the skillstrip had been wasted, but perhaps…

Taking in the picturesque view of the faint, tri-coloured moonlight as it fought with the dark fog, Claud found himself somewhat fearful of the vast powers that he had provoked. Sure, he didn't have much of a choice in the matter — he was on the brink of a mental breakdown and everything — but the Moons definitely wouldn't give a hoot about that.

"Claud?" Lily asked. "What's wrong?"

"I didn't do anything, so how can you tell such things about me?" Claud wondered.

"I was looking at your face," Lily replied.

"Oh." Claud poked his own cheeks. "I was just scared, see? Of the powers that are poised to clash with each other. It's dangerous when mana-users fight, right? They might lose control of their mana, their missed attacks might harm some innocent passer-by…it's the same for the Moons and the Dark."

"As well as the Coloured Gods."

Claud twitched. "Yeah. I'm not sure what's going on with their announcement, but this Trial of Aeons thing is almost certainly harmful to the Coloured Gods. That's how it is. Their Bearers of Destiny died, and the Trial of Aeons…"

"How does one even get into the Trial of Aeons? Or is it something else?" Lily bobbed her head. "I've never heard of such a thing."

"We've never heard of the Moons or the great Dark descending, so I don't think we should use that standard," Claud pointed out. "More importantly, if it's an opportunity for mortals to become gods, what should we do? Should we go for it?"

"…What exactly is a god anyway?" Lily asked.

"Eh?" Claud's brain whirled. "A super-strong folder? Someone that surpasses nine-folds?"

"Alright, we aren't getting anywhere." Lily took a deep breath, before exhaling slowly. "We should find Nero and ask him about the Coloured Gods. Funny how we don't seem to think about them too much, isn't it?"

"Speaking of the Coloured Gods," said Claud, "when the three fellows died earlier, I actually received three notifications. About complete quests."

Lily, who was on the verge of entering the inn, held up a hand. "Wait. Let's talk after we get a room. I'm beginning to feel a complex set of emotions. If you complete that sentence here…"

"Huh?" Claud quailed a moment later as Lily sniffed, before clamming up. Following her obediently, she got a room and pulled Claud along, before settling down on a bed.

"So…free lifespan?" Lily asked, curious.

"Yeah." Claud glanced at the three complete quests once more, and then smiled sheepishly.

[<Hidden Quest: Fabricator's Fall> has been completed. Calculating result grade.]

[<Hidden Quest: Sunderer's Slaying> has been completed. Calculating result grade.]

[<Hidden Quest: Day's Death> has been completed. Calculating result grade.]

All of them were Grade 5, which gave him a small fraction of their lifespan and a Fragment of Fate each. Not too much, but…

"I don't think I'll be needing lifestones for now," Claud dismissed the notifications and turned to Lily. "You can have my share too."

"Still, are you the only one who receives lifespan when Bearers of Destiny die?" Lily asked. "If not, and if someone else also has such a quest, we might see the appearance of an ennea-folder in millennia."

Claud sat down on the bed and activated his Refresher. Tossing it to Lily, he pulled out Throne and Crown, settling them onto the nearby table. "But that's something I shouldn't need to care about, right? I mean, I don't hate the Bearers or anything, really. Those that died to me were in the wrong place at the wrong time. That's all."

Lily smiled, and then climbed onto the bed. "You say that, but…"

"Yeah." Claud let out a puff of air. "I know. But that's for the future, isn't it?"

Lily snuggled up to him and didn't reply.

[End of Book 6: Secrets in Shadow]